Sorry about your luck, here’s a tent!

A thermal sleeping bag that turns into a tent- made just for homeless people; how could this product not be a great idea? Well, that would depend on your point of view, and what outcome you want to achieve with this product. Either way, there is a side to this recent product that will likely escape the thoughts of most housed residents; and that’s how this will actually play-out in the lives of our less fortunate.

This product, described as a ‘satellite shelter’, is not a basic item need though like coats, hats, or gloves to protect you from the cold winter’s chill while you’re outside your warm home; these tent-beds are intended to BE the home, in the cold! And, when we’re dealing with a person’s dignity, health & wellbeing, and their basic human need for decent shelter; we can, and must, do better than this.

In my experience with the issues of homelessness, I would caution that if this “over-the-shoulder refuge that could serve as an alternative to a standard homeless shelter” be made readily and freely available, there would be a flood of these tents popping up everywhere and anywhere around our city. And, eventually, it will become a primary form of shelter for chronic & habitual homelessness- fostering in a new form of unsuitable housing.

There is a critical flaw in thinking when we seek to ‘accommodate’ homelessness; as it deflects our efforts and resources away from our primary moral obligation of trying to end it. And, as harsh as it may sound, we don’t want to be making homelessness more comfortable, or socially acceptable. That approach is counterproductive on every level, and it will only serve to enable living on the streets.

My concern with this latest ‘solution’ to homelessness is that the tent-beds could be adopted into our culture as an acceptable alternative to sustainable & affordable housing because “It’s better than nothing!” But it’s not. And, instead of handing someone a tent-bag on the street and wishing them the best of luck, we should be providing immediate access to warm, safe shelter for the night- followed up with a needs assessment by a housing worker, and/or a counselor, to work on resolving the issue.

The epitome of our lethargic political and social service systems

It is also my assertion that, in time, it could become more than just a humanitarian aid; that it will become a basic accessory for people experiencing homelessness, tucked into a back-pack along with the other ‘essential items’. We need to be very cautious about how this kind of superficial quick-fix solution is integrated into our society; and, more specifically, into our community services.

Yes, it’s a neat idea, and I do applaud the effort and ingenuity of the students that designed this satellite shelter. These thermally insulated, compactable, and portable tent-beds would make a great addition to emergency service vehicles, and even in an arctic adventurers’ survival kit. Still, it’s a temporary emergency solution at best, and it should only be used and distributed as such.

So, until the City of Barrie resolves our affordable housing crisis, let’s not go that route. Instead, we should maintain and support our existing shelter services like the Barrie Out Of The Cold (BOOTC) program that helps with emergency overnight winter shelter, and runs out of the David Busby Centre 7 days/week, between 5-7pm. We also have the Salvation Army Mens Shelter, Carah House, and the Womens & Childrens shelter as other emergency shelter options too.

I do sincerely hope that I never see these tent-beds filling up the supply shelves of our community groups, organizations, or outreach service providers alongside their inventory of hats, and gloves. If so, it will serve to amplify our existing crisis with the lack of decent affordable housing, and, become the epitome of our lethargic political and social service systems.